Daily Sports

Will Sumathipala survive Ramanayake’s allegations?

A few days after Muttiah Muralitharan’s statement on SLC and political influence, Deputy Minister Ranjan Ramanayake filed a complaint with the Bribery Commision against Thilanga Sumathipala, SLC CEO Ashley De Silva, and former Sports Minister Dayasiri Jayasekara.

A series of provocative incidents concerning the former Sports Minister Dayasiri Jayasekara, Deputy Minister Ranjan Ramanayake and the current President of Sri Lanka Cricket Thilanga Sumathipala forced the SLC elections to be postponed to late June or July 2018.

Therefore, the Sri Lanka Cricket Executive Committee will remain in charge on an interim basis even after their term ends on May 31, 2018. The election was originally scheduled to be held on May 19.

Dayasiri Jayasekara and the No-Confidence Motion

A no-confidence motion was brought against the current Prime Minister Ranil Wickramasinghe earlier this month. After the unsuccessful bid, Dayasiri Jayasekara resigned from his position as Sports Minister. He was immediately replaced by Faizer Mustapha who took an oath to work as Interim Sports Minister until the cabinet reshuffle.

Former Sports Minister Dayasiri Jayasekara

Meanwhile, Sri Lanka Cricket claims the board sought permission from Dayasiri Jayasekara to conduct the election on May 19.

“Since we didn’t have time to appoint an election committee at the last EGM, we sought permission from the previous Sports Minister for the Executive Committee to appoint an election committee. I don’t know, however, if the present Minister knew about the permission that we had received from the previous Minister,” an SLC official told ESPNcricnfo.

Ranjan Ramanayake’s allegations

A few days after Muttiah Muralitharan’s statement on SLC and political influence, Deputy Minister Ranjan Ramanayake filed a complaint with the Bribery Commision against Thilanga Sumathipala, SLC CEO Ashley De Silva, and former Sports Minister Dayasiri Jayasekara.

Ranjan Ramanayake revealed that his complaint included alleged match-fixing and frauds regarding broadcasting rights. He also informed that he was not the only one standing against corrupt Sri Lanka Cricket officials.

Later, Ramanayake was inquired by Alex Marshall (ICC’s General Manager- ACU). The minister informed that he disclosed all information he held.

“The investigation by the ICC is a humiliation for Sri Lanka’s cricket as this kind of thing has not taken place in other countries,” said Ranjan Ramanayake. Furthermore, he claimed he was offered a bribe in an attempt to stop him from disclosing all information.

According to the Deputy Minister, the Bribery Commission had accepted the complaint and informed a reference number will be provided in the due course.

What next for Thilanga Sumathipala?

Ranjan Ramanayake’s allegations are only under inquiry and if found accurate, Sumathipala will be in a lot of trouble, especially in the eyes of the International Cricket Committee (ICC).

Photo – Business Today

However, if Sumathipala is not guilty, he still has a good chance of competing for presidency at the elections in late June or July. For the time being, the executive committee will work as the interim committee to continue the administrative activities of the board.